Abellanosa: Our feelings toward China

AT THE onset I would like to make it clear that there is no reason why we should close our market to foreigners. Apparently we have to dance with the tune of globalization. However, it is one thing to face the reality, and it is basically another thing to, out of cowardice, just give up our rights, interests, and claims as a country.

There is an excessive and unreasonable generosity, I must say, which the current administration has given to China. Under this administration, the Philippines has lost its political bearings. It has difficulty figuring out how to position vis-à-vis China. Despite his projections of “macho governance”, Duterte has not in any degree or inch showed the needed courage and conviction to advance the interest of the Republic of the Philippines. We have to mention in particular how he failed to advance the gains of the previous administration as regards our claim in the West Philippines Sea. I hope it is not merely a case of loving “red” out of hatred for “yellow.”

Quite untold but things are getting clearer that at the onset the government does not have any plan to fight for our legal options. Obviously war is not one of our options. Either we don’t have the military capability or at least the courage to go to war. I would even dare say that we don’t have both. In retrospect we have been conditioned to move towards the direction that the current administration has been leading us to.

Since day one in the presidency, Duterte expressed distrust towards the U.S. He would like all of us to believe that after all these years we are fooled by the United States of America. In a way this is correct. However, he uses the rhetoric for the wrong purpose. He is blasting and destroying the credibility of one hegemon only to blindly lead us to embrace another. Unfortunately, this new imperialist country to whom we will soon bow down might be no better than the former in a number of aspects.

The word impotent might be an understatement, but “really” we are becoming one in the face of China’s expanding latitude of influence. And instead of using available diplomatic tactics in order to, at least, mitigate China’s bullying the current administration ends up as the number one endorser of a legitimized illegal occupation in the disputed territory.

I cannot help but think that the president has misplaced his energy towards poor drug addicts and unarmed priests and bishops. Duterte’s fire and fury are high against a certain “Bishop David.” He has even threatened to behead the said bishop. He has also vowed to wipe out the New People’s Army by creating a new unit to counter attack insurgency. Unfortunately, I am yet to hear any report of him going to the West Philippine Sea in his jet ski. He hasn’t even sent enough reinforcement that would defend Filipino fishermen who are now losing their livelihood because the Chinese coastguard would not allow them to fish in their own sea.

With all this said, the current administration is like a husband who would excellently punch his wife whenever he gets drunk. Not contented, he would spank all his noisy, unfed, and impoverished looking children. But when bullied by a stronger macho neighbor, he hides in the closet or ends up like a dog on leash.

And the Filipino people? They honestly don’t know what to do or feel. Like their president, they don’t know where to stand. Unfortunately some of us are the “sip-sip children” who continue to idolize Tatay’s failures despite the fact that he has not given the least sense of respect for our household, i.e. the Philippines. We are confused and demoralized as we look at our macho Tatay beaten, kicked and bullied by our stronger neighbor.

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